Bread Bakers Guild of America spotlights bakery software
You can find out pretty much everything you need to know about bakery software in the latest episode of Let’s Talk from the Bread Bakers Guild of America (BBGA).
Hosted by Panamanian TV Top Chef judge and BBGA board member, Edna Cochez, the live Instagram session featured Cybake USA’s brand ambassador Oprah Davidson.
Oprah says: “It was a very laid-back Q&A session where Edna had her own questions but also the audience and viewers had theirs. Hopefully, it enlightened people or gave insight into the pros of using bakery software as well as whatever challenges might arise from it as well.”
As Oprah explains in the interview (which you can watch here): “There is specific software, dedicated to bakeries, that understands the language of bakers. That’s what we do. You plug in your orders and then, based on the orders that you plugged in, Cybake generates the production sheets, how much dough you need to produce to make all of those orders; and it generates an invoice as well.”
Starting out over 30 years ago, the BBGA has become an integral part of the artisanal and craft bakery world.
Talking about its activities, Karen Bornarth, BBGA executive director, places a good deal of emphasis on its sense of community.
She says: “I think that when our members meet either through a class or through our active email group, they form relationships and, for a lot of the bakers and bakery owners in our community, these long-lasting relationships have been key to their success. They become mentors for each other, and they lean on each other for advice.”
Passion for baking
Karen also stresses the importance of education. She said that while members often show large amounts of passion for baking, they may not have the most knowledge as to how to run a bakery business. However, smaller, artisanal bakers are now working out their options.
“A lot of our members were at IBIE looking at machinery,” she says. “What’s interesting about this current moment is that many smaller bakeries are looking at ways they can automate. They are struggling to attract and retain talent, or they may be in a position to grow but they can’t afford to grow a team alongside. So, they’re starting to explore and invest in automation.”
Recalling an education session at September’s IBIE conference in Las Vegas by Josh Allen from St Louis’ Companion Bakery, Karen says: “He’s a successful business owner who has a lot of years under his belt to get to where he is. He said something interesting. He quoted his dad at the start of his session, who once said to him: ‘What gets measured, gets managed.’ Josh is using data to run his business and make smart operational choices.
“I think that all bakery owners can take a lesson from Josh and develop an awareness of what’s happening in their business through data, both quantitative and qualitative.”
If you are interested in how cloud bakery management software can benefit your bakery business, please get in touch to book a chat and a demo.
Chris James is a communications specialist for Cybake and Cybake USA.
